(LANKAPUVATH | COLOMBO) – The four Holy Kapilvastu Relics of Lord Buddha have reached Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia for an 11-day exposition as part of the Mongolian Buddha Purnima festivities.
A 25-member delegation, led by Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju accompanied the sacred relics which were received with great reverence and ceremoniously at the Ulaanbaatar International Airport on Monday, the Union Ministry of Culture said.
Those present to receive the holy relics included Mongolian Culture Minister Ch Nomin, MP and Chairperson of India Mongolia Friendship Group Ms Saranchimeg; Advisor to the President of Mongolia Khamba Nomun Khan and a large number of monks among other dignitaries.
These Holy Relics are part of the 22 special relics kept in New Delhi’s National Museum.
The Holy Relics have been housed at the Gandan Monastery, where they were welcomed ceremoniously amidst prayers and Buddhist chants. A large number of Mongolian people gathered to pay their respects to the sacred Buddha Relics, the culture ministry said.
The Relics were handed over to the Gandan Monastery in the presence of Buddhist monks for safe keeping ahead of the exposition beginning from Tuesday.
Historical relations between India and Mongolia will further strengthen with the coming of relics from India to Mongolia, Rijiju said.
The minister also pointed out that the main Buddha statue in the Gandan Monastery was gifted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015 to the people of Mongolia and it has been installed in 2018.
Prime Minister Modi was the first-ever Prime Minister of India to visit Mongolia. Bringing the relics to Mongolia is a continuation of Prime Minister Modi’s desire to renew India’s connections with nations with which India has had cultural and spiritual links for generations, the government had said last week.
(India News Network)
